State bill proposes Hatfield-McCoy license plates

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- They've been satirized by Mark Twain, mythologized in a hugely successful mini-series and, if a newly proposed bill passes the West Virginia Legislature, the Hatfield and McCoy families will be immortalized on state specialty license plates.

The bill proposed this week would create specialty license plates reading "Hatfield and McCoy Country." They would be at least the 59th variety of specialty license plates available in West Virginia.

The plates would be available for a $15 annual fee that would help fund the state road fund.

The bill's sponsor, Delegate Justin Marcum, D-Mingo, wants to use the license plates to promote tourism in Southern West Virginia.

A touchstone of American folklore, the feud between the Hatfield family of West Virginia and the McCoy family of Kentucky dates back to the Civil War.